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U.S. Government Hires Company To Hack Into Video Game Consoles

Posted by timothy on from the free-play-guys-look-into-it dept.

An anonymous reader writes "The U.S. Navy is paying a company six figures to hack into used video game consoles and extract sensitive information. The tasks to be completed are for both offline and online data. The organization says it will only use the technology on consoles belonging to nations overseas, because the law doesn't allow it to be used on any 'U.S. persons.'" Should be a doddle.

11 of 121 comments (clear)

  1. Sensitive information? by PPH · · Score: 4, Funny

    They're looking for the high scores of Taliban insurgents or what?

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
    1. Re:Sensitive information? by AngryDeuce · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Yeah that's what I'm wondering. What useful information could be gleaned from a game console? Do they think that the terrorists are using Xbox Live and PSN to communicate now or what? How would that be any more beneficial than the plethora of pre-paid cell phones out there that cost next to nothing and can be tossed regularly?

    2. Re:Sensitive information? by AngryDeuce · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Not necessarily, you can buy XBL time cards for cash, also...that's what I do, I refuse to give them my CC#. Ditto with PSN (you've got to be insane to trust them with your CC#, after all that bullshit last year.

      As long as there is an alternative to using my CC#, I'm going to choose that. When they get rid of that ability, I stop spending money with them. It wouldn't really bother me much, anyway, to be honest; 99% of my gaming is on PC these days.

    3. Re:Sensitive information? by wickedskaman · · Score: 3, Informative

      Yeah that's what I'm wondering. What useful information could be gleaned from a game console? Do they think that the terrorists are using Xbox Live and PSN to communicate now or what?

      It's been reported that that's exactly what's going on.

      --
      Sand's overrated... it's just tiny little rocks.
  2. Re:They can hack my original game boy and SNES. by AngryDeuce · · Score: 4, Funny

    I guess I'd better hide my copy of Custer's Revenge, otherwise I could be on a one way ticket to Gitmo...

  3. Re:steganography? by Smallpond · · Score: 3, Funny

    Woder what they are looking for.. Mostly wonder what can be found thats not already on facebook.

    They're looking for clues to beat the Ironman Challenge in WoW.

  4. I was thinking a late April Fools joke. by khasim · · Score: 3, Insightful

    What could THE NAVY possibly get from used game consoles?

    And why go that route to get it?

    1. Re:I was thinking a late April Fools joke. by houghi · · Score: 3, Funny

      I am sure they are looking for a fighter like they do here

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    2. Re:I was thinking a late April Fools joke. by gstrickler · · Score: 4, Funny

      Sorry for the delay, but military bureaucracy means it takes a while to get all the forms approved before posting AF jokes.

      --
      make imaginary.friends COUNT=100 VISIBLE=false
  5. not your property any more by cellocgw · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Not that I support the Navy (?? what? why Navy?) doing this stuff, or paying so much, but there is possible precedent. It's been pretty clear for a long time that anything you throw out in the trash is no longer your possession. So, before you toss that old game console, take a hammer to the memory bits.

    --
    https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
  6. Uh, yeah... by Higgins_Boson · · Score: 4, Insightful

    because the law doesn't allow it to be used on any 'U.S. persons.'

    As if that ever stopped them before. **rolls eyes**